Editor-in-chief: Benjamin Szumskyj
Editorial team: James Doig, Leigh Blackmore and Phillip A. Ellis
Contact: phillip.a.ellis [@] gmail.com

Studies in Australian Weird Fiction (SiAWF) aims to deliver an academic forum where Australian authors from all eras are to be studied. Themes, topics, issues and single-focus essays will be accompanied by interviews, symposiums and notes of interest. Award winning author Robert Hood will have a column in each issue called "The Ossuary".

To be published three times a year, the journal studies the works of Australian authors – novel, short story and poetry – in the context of the "weird tale". As discussed in the landmark volume The Weird Tale (1990), critic S. T. Joshi states that the 'weird tale' exists as "the consequences of a world view… in accordance with [the authors'] philosophical predispositions… [and] their metaphysical, ethical, and aesthetic theories" and spotlights the genres of dark fantasy, supernatural horror, non-supernatural horror, and quasi-science fiction.



  • Potential essayists should first provide a synopsis of their essay with the editors before writing the piece.
  • All submissions should be sent via email to khraftstarATyahooDOTcom with the title STUDIES IN AUSTRALIAN WEIRD FICTION. Copies to be submitted as Rich Text Format (RTF) files only and should be formatted in accordance to the style conventions of the Modern Language Association (MLA Style): http://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/557/01/. We do not expect the formatting to be perfect, but do expect a good-faith effort.
  • Please include both valid e-mail and postal addresses with your submission.
  • All submissions will be acknowledged within 24 hours of being received.
  • Unless negotiated otherwise, copyright is assigned to Studies in Australian Weird Fiction for a year. The author's moral rights will be preserved, permission will be granted should the author want to reprint the work elsewhere during this period of time, and Studies in Australian Weird Fiction will not in turn assign the copyright elsewhere without the consent of the author.
  • Please note that the editors will directly contact authors to be interviewed and will call for critics to be involved in symposiums by way of the Southern Horror yahoo group (http://groups.yahoo.com/group/southern_horror/).

Upon publication, all contributors receive a contributor's copy of the journal issue which their article appeared. The journal will seek to be indexed with AustLit and the Modern Language Association (MLA). Copies will be archived in the National Library of Australia.

Studies in Australian Weird Fiction is supported by the Australian Horror Writers Association and is funded personally by the editors.

The journal will appear three times a year and can be purchased directly from EQUILIBRIUM BOOKS or at select retailers (to be announced here soon). SiAWF costs $24.95 AUS per issue and is payable through Credit Card or PayPal. Australian Horror Writers Association members are eligible for a discount.

PREVIOUS ISSUES:
ISSUE 1 (March 2008)
ISSUE 2 (October 2008)



CONTENTS FOR STUDIES IN AUSTRALIAN WEIRD FICTION #3

Articles --

  • "William Sylvester Walker (‘Coo-ee’): A Neglected Colonial Writer of the Australian Outback" by James Doig
  • "The Prophet of Revelation: A Note on the Work of L Furze-Morrish" by Mark Valentine
  • "The Weird Verse of Hugh McCrae: A Brief Sketch and Introduction" by Phillip A. Ellis
  • "Stanley Larnach and J.P. Quaine: Forgotten Australian Collectors of ‘Penny Bloods’" by James Doig
  • "Digging Beneath ‘Phosphor; an Ischian mystery’ by J. Filmore Sherry" by Marty Young
  • "Robert Bloch in Australia – Cinecon 1981" by James Doig
  • "Hakwork: An Appreciation of John Brosnan" by Steven Paulsen
  • "Yeah, Though I Walk Through the Valley of the Shadow of Beth: Murdering the Muse in Nick Cave’s And the Ass Saw the Angel" by J. W. Ocker

Interviews --

  • "Maternal Instincts: An Interview with Lyn Battersby"
  • "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Fire: An Interview Cat Sparks"
  • "Chaos Spoke to His Pen: An Interview with Neil Cladingboel"
  • "The Quill is Mightier than the Sword: An Interview with Benjamin Szumskyj"
  • "Smoke & Mirrors: An Interview with Shane Jiraiya Cummings"
  • "From Temper, Temper to Tender Morsels: An Interview with Margo Lanagan"
  • "From Grimoires to Gold Dust: An Interview with Kim Wilkins"
  • "Australian Pulp: An Interview with Graeme Flanagan"

Celebrity Columnist --

  • "The Ossuary: Undeath, the Multiverse and the Meaning of Everything” by Robert Hood"

Symposiums --

  • "The Cars That Ate The Picnic At Wolf Creek: A Symposium on Australian Horror Films" discussed by Lee Battersby, David Carroll and Robert Hood
  • "Echoes in the Wilderness: Weird Poetry in Australia" discussed by Phillip A. Ellis and Charles Lovecraft


Cover for Volume 3 (Front cover artwork Michael Steele © 2009)